


The Black Riders

by that_one_kid



Series: Lack of Adult Supervision (Camp Counselor AU) [8]
Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Lord of the Rings (Movies), The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Gen, Summer Camp AU, The continuing adventures of my idiot children
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-01
Updated: 2019-11-01
Packaged: 2021-01-16 03:48:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 574
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21264560
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/that_one_kid/pseuds/that_one_kid
Summary: There's something else in the woods.





	The Black Riders

**Author's Note:**

> See end note for trigger warnings.

They'd been walking for almost an hour already. It had started to get really dark, and the faint glow of ISC on the horizon was finally visible.

“I think we should get off the road,” Frodo said quietly. Pippin was swinging his arms by his side, and Merry grabbed at them to get his attention. 

“What?” Pippin whined. Frodo went pale. 

“Get off the road! Now!” he yelped, and Merry wasted no more time before yanking his cousin into the bushes beside the road. 

“Turn off the light!” Frodo was saying, and Merry heard a click, then a rattle as Sam dove after them, and then nothing. There was just long enough of a pause that Pippin started wriggling in Merry’s grip, and then they all heard it. 

“What is that?” Merry whispered, and Frodo squirmed around to face him, eyes wide in the sudden dark.

“Hoofbeats,” Frodo whispered back. “Someone’s coming this way.”

“Who?” But on that note, their erstwhile leader was silent. 

A dark horse came leaping along the road, bursting out of the dark. Merry’s hand automatically tightened over Pippin’s mouth, muffling his surprised yelp. The horse skidded to a stop in front of them, and the man on top of it twisted his head directly towards them. 

Merry held his breath. No one dared move a single muscle. After a very, very long second, the rider turned his head. Or, at least Merry thought he did. He was dressed in dark jeans and a black sweatshirt with the hood up. It was very difficult to tell what he was doing in the close darkness of the forest. 

There was a strange, soft sound. It made the hairs on the back of Merry’s neck stand on end. 

“Is he… sniffing?” Pippin whispered incredulously. Merry squeezed his cousin’s shoulder and mouthed ‘SHUT UP!’. The figure stiffened, paused, and then kicked sharply at the horse’s sides. With a loud whinny, the horse shot off again and out of view. 

“What was that all about?” Pippin asked, tumbling out of the bushes and back onto the road. Frodo, being helped out of the bushes by Sam, looked worried. 

“I have no idea. But I think we should stay off the roads from now on.” 

“Frodo?” Merry knew his voice was shaking. “What… what else is in these woods? Besides the weird horsemen and the wolves and the serial killer?”

“I’m not sure. But we can handle it!” Frodo said, lifting a hefty stick from the bushes. Sam swung his pillowcase full of brick in a manner that was almost menacing. 

“I dunno, Frodo,” Merry pressed, glancing around the dark forest. “Maybe we should go back.” 

“Merry,” Pippin suddenly chimed in, throwing his arm over Merry’s shoulders. “Has Frodo ever led us astray?” Merry had to admit that he hadn’t. “No? Then it’s simple! We trust Frodo, and if we need to hide we just pretend we’ve been stealing mushrooms from Farmer Maggot again.” 

“I guess,” Merry said.

“Okay, ISC is just over this next ridge,” Frodo said. “We’re almost there, and then we can get the phone and head back.” 

“Let’s do it,” Pippin whispered, eyes alight with glee. Merry thought privately that this was precisely what Pippin had said before The Incident that had gotten them banned from Shire Camp in the first place. Regardless, they set off, angling across the forest floor towards the slight rise and the glowing lights of ISC. 

**Author's Note:**

> Trigger warnings: Children in dangerous situations


End file.
